Using the military to respond to public sector strikes: Military Aid for Civilian Authorities (MACA)

What are the criteria for deploying the military to support public services?

Government departments take the lead in planning ⁵⁸ Under the Civil Contingencies act, lead government departments must manage risks assigned to their respective policy portfolios. For more details on how this differs for the devolved administrations see Appendix 1A of Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf
   for and responding to major events affecting the UK and the Crown Dependencies. ⁵⁹ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf, p.23 Where civilian capabilities and capacities are overwhelmed by an incident (or are insufficient to respond to a future event) Military Aid for Civilian Authorities (MACA) may be appropriate. ⁶⁰ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf, p.3  This could mean supporting major sporting events or responding to natural disasters like floods or terrorist attacks

MACA requests come from government departments and can be approved by a defence minister if and when: ⁶¹ Should ‘immediate’ assistance be needed, in specific instances local military commanders can authorise requests.  

• there is a definite need to act and the tasks the armed forces are being asked to perform are clear;
• other options, including mutual aid, commercial alternatives and the voluntary sector have been discounted;
• the civil authority lacks the necessary capability to fulfil the task and it is unreasonable or prohibitively expensive to expect it to develop one; or
• the civil authority has all or some capability, but it may not be available immediately, or to the required scale, and the urgency of the task requires rapid external support from the MOD. ⁶² Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf,

Who pays for the deployment?

In line with HM Treasury rules, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) charges other government departments for services beyond their normal funded defence tasks. ⁶³ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf, p.60 The relevant department requesting the military assistance is typically charged for the cost of operations at a sliding scale depending on the nature of the operation.

For pre-planned operations, the relevant department pays the full cost. For dynamic situations, like a flood, a marginal rate is charged. In limited circumstances such as when life is at risk, the MoD bears the cost. ⁶⁴ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf, Section 2A.4

The charge out rate for each solider deployed in response to the 2022/23 strikes was approximately £4,000 per week. ⁶⁵ Dunton J, Departments set to be billed millions for armed forces strike cover, Civil Service World, 16 December 2022, www.civilserviceworld.com/professions/article/strikes-border-force-armed-forces-civil-service-cover-billed-millions-4000-week  To assist with Border Forces, the NHS and fire services the MoD has trained up approximately 1,400 personnel and allocated a further 900 personnel for the devolved administrations. ⁶⁶ Public Accounts Committee Oral evidence: MoD Equipment Plan 2022-2032, HC 731, 15 December 2022, https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/12441/default/

Once an operation has been planned, the requesting department will have to pay the cost even in event of last-minute cancellations. In 2014, the MoD prepared Operation Prismed in response to a Department of Health request to help manage the impact of planned industrial action. Though the industrial action was cancelled, the department was charged at full cost. ⁶⁷ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120464/20221128-JDP_02_Web.pdf, p. 63

When has the military been used to cover public strikes?

The military has been used almost 966 times between 2016 and 2021, responding to natural disasters and terrorist attacks, supporting major public events like the Commonwealth Games and responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. ⁶⁸ House of Commons Library, Deploying the armed forces in the UK, Research Briefing, 28 July 2022, https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9601/CBP-9601.pdf  However, it has only been used for public service strikes on a handful of occasions. 

What have ministers said about using the military to cover strikes?

Before Christmas the defence secretary, Ben Wallace, expressed his gratitude for ‘the sacrifices made this winter by members of our Armed Forces, who are giving up their time to keep our essential services running and to bolster UK resilience’. ⁸¹ Morris S and Brown F, Unions are holding public services 'to ransom', Defence Secretary Ben Wallace says - as PM 'sad and disappointed' at strikes, Sky News, 24 December 2022, https://news.sky.com/story/rishi-sunak-sad-and-disappointed-by-strikes-threatening-christmas-getaways-12773585  The prime minister, Rishi Sunak, also said thanked troops working over Christmas. ⁸² Sky News, Twitter, 9 December 2022, https://twitter.com/skynews/status/1601199051935928322

What are the issues with using the military to cover strikes?

A House of Lords Committee recently stated that the armed forces cannot act as a civil protection force and balance needs to be struck between resilience and reliance. ⁸³ House of Lords Select Committee on Risk Assessment and Risk Planning, Preparing for Extreme Risks: Building a Resilient Society, 3 December 2023, https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5802/ldselect/ldrisk/110/110.pdf Likewise, the chief of defence staff – Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the head of British Armed Forces – has cautioned the government about using the military as the ‘ultimate backstop’ during industrial action and said the armed forces are not ‘spare capacity’ for striking workers. ⁸⁴ Nicholls D, We are not spare capacity for strikes, says Armed Forces head, The Telegraph, 17 December 2022, www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/12/17/not-spare-capacity-strikes-says-armed-forces-head/  Anonymous defence officials have argued it is wrong to use the military this way given the forces received a relatively small wage increase last year and are not allowed to strike. ⁸⁵ Nicholls D, We are not spare capacity for strikes, says Armed Forces head, The Telegraph, 17 December 2022  

Does the military have necessary powers/expertise?

All MACA operations must be conducted within the law. ⁸⁶ Ministry of Defence, Joint Doctrine Publication 02, UK Operations: the Defence Contribution to Resilience.  Military status, however doesn’t grant personnel profession-specific legal rights. Emergency vehicles are permitted to run through red traffic lights under certain circumstances, however soldiers are not legally allowed to do so. ⁸⁷ Taylor W, Soldiers driving ambulances 'can't run red lights because it would break the law' during strikes, minister claims, LBC Radio, 20 December 2022, www.lbc.co.uk/news/soldiers-driving-ambulances-red-lights/  Similarly, when deployed to support the police, military personnel only have the same powers of arrest as a regular citizen. ⁸⁸ As explained in Brooke-Holland L, Deploying the armed forces in the UK, House of Commons Library, https:/commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9601, the exception to this is the Ministry of Defence Police who can exercise police powers when request and operating under the operational control of the chief constable.

Is the military big enough to face increasing MACA demands?

The UK military has faced increasing volumes of MACA demands, most recently when it provided a crucial role in response to Covid-19 through logistical support, constructing Nightingale Hospitals, distributing PPE, supporting ambulance services, assisting with vaccine roll-out and assisting test and trace. ⁸⁹ House of Lords Select Committee on Risk Assessment and Risk Planning, Preparing for Extreme Risks: Building a Resilient Society, 3 December 2023, https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5802/ldselect/ldrisk/110/110.pdf, p. 67  

During the pandemic the percentage of MACA requests that were executed or completed decreased from 85% in 2018 to 57% in 2020. MACA demands are expected to increase in the future due to the increasing volatility and frequency of climate-related emergencies in the UK.

Increasing demands come in the context of government plans to reduce the Army to 72,500 personnel, its smallest size in 300 years. ⁹⁰ Bunkall A, Army to shrink to its smallest size since the 1700s while £23bn is invested in technology, under new defence plans, Sky News, 22 March 2021, https://news.sky.com/story/army-to-shrink-to-its-smallest-size-since-the-1700s-while-23bn-is-invested-in-technology-under-new-defence-plans-12253694

Opposition parties have critiqued anti-strike MACA deployments saying military forces are being overstretched. ⁹¹ Sabbagh D, British army could be overstretched by stepping in during strikes, says Labour, The Guardian, 2 December 2022, www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/dec/02/british-army-could-be-overstretched-by-stepping-in-during-strikes-says-labour  The Chief of Defence Staff has, however, said MACA deployments in response to strike action will not impede operational effectiveness. ⁹² Nicholls D, We are not spare capacity for strikes, says Armed Forces head, The Telegraph.